Will the US ever stop imprisoning everyone under the sun??

[Twilight Hue]

makes me wonder how many prison owning millionaires there are in the USA.
Some one must be gaining from all these prisoners.

In fact I remember talks in the past about the privatisations of prisons.
FOR PROFIT!

If that happens, which in fact it has to an extent.....whats next?

Corporate Policing and enforcement as opposed to government?
Lets see... corporate police arresting and booking unwitting citizenry into corporate prisons. It all becomes clearer.

Normally I would just laugh at this scenario. But it disappears in face of the reality of corporations like the CCA.

Private prison operator expects business to grow - The NewStandard

And of course that notable and infamous quip from Pres Obama with now a potential for fruition of this...

[youtube]YtQHvJnBqHI[/youtube]
YouTube - Obama Gets What He Asked For - Corporate Police

Adddum: Granted this is a conspiracy vid but this facility actually exists.

 

[Thesavorofpan]

Legalizing drugs pops a couple of questions in my head that I would like answered.
1. What kind of buisness would be ruining it?
2. What kind of effect would it have on soiecty in general? (I mean how would soiecty today change in reaction to this law.)
3. What will happen to all those drug lords out there?
4. What will happen to he people in jail convicted of drug crimes?
5. Should we really allow destructive drugs like Crystal Meth and Herion to be freely taken by people?

 

[TheKnight]

In fact I remember talks in the past about the privatisations of prisons.
FOR PROFIT!

If that happens, which in fact it has to an extent.....whats next?

Corporate Policing and enforcement as opposed to government?
Lets see... corporate police arresting and booking unwitting citizenry into corporate prisons. It all becomes clearer.

Normally I would just laugh at this scenario. But it disappears in face of the reality of corporations like the CCA.

Private prison operator expects business to grow - The NewStandard

And of course that notable and infamous quip from Pres Obama with now a potential for fruition of this...

[youtube]YtQHvJnBqHI[/youtube]
YouTube - Obama Gets What He Asked For - Corporate Police

Adddum: Granted this is a conspiracy vid but this facility actually exists.

Private policing wouldn't be so bad. It could be better for policing as far as funds are concerned. And it could work the same way it does now, a city contracts with a department for the policing.

 

[gnomon]

Legalizing drugs pops a couple of questions in my head that I would like answered.
1. What kind of buisness would be ruining it?
2. What kind of effect would it have on soiecty in general? (I mean how would soiecty today change in reaction to this law.)
3. What will happen to all those drug lords out there?
4. What will happen to he people in jail convicted of drug crimes?
5. Should we really allow destructive drugs like Crystal Meth and Herion to be freely taken by people?

Well, we wouldn't have to legalize all of them. Small steps such as moving marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule V would be the best start.

Just taking marijuana pharmaceutical companies could handle medical marijuana be it smoke, developed into a better pill or used in a vaporized form. Individual citizens could grow their own and certain businesses could apply for licenses to sell it. It would be reasonable to control it much like alcohol.

I doubt the effect on society would be bad. As it is now we are taking a drug known by the medical industry to be less damaging to an individuals health and less damaging to society at large than alcohol and treating it in an irrational manner. Forcing many into treatment which costs a lot of money to the individual and insurance companies who do not need to be there. Spending large amounts of money imprisoning people for it. The collateral damage from botched raids for this drug is inexcusable. The damage that has been done to civil rights prosecuting marijuana alone could be fixed.

The drug lords would continue with harder drugs such as cocaine, heroin, meth, etc. However, allowing for freer use of marijuana with less legal consequences could result in a shift of users from the more dangerous drugs to using one that involves less risks.

Anyone currently serving a sentence for the possession, manufacture or sale of marijuana could have those charges repealed and the sentencing on those charges commuted. However, if they are in jail, prison, paroled or on probation for other unrelated charges those would stick. For example, if someone was driving recklessly while high the reckless driving charge would stay.

We do not need to legalize all drugs. A step by step approach would be the best thing. Though I would push for leniency on LSD, ecstasy, cocaine, other hallucinogens and such for some reason I fully support a complete ban on illicit methamphetamine and heroin.

 

[Revoltingest]

Private policing wouldn't be so bad. It could be better for policing as far as funds are concerned. And it could work the same way it does now, a city contracts with a department for the policing.

We already have a problem with government policing for profit.
Policing for Profit - National Release: 3-30-2010 | The Institute for Justice

In my area (& I presume many others), police are cutting back on investigation & prosecution of real crimes, but ramping up efforts to
issue traffic tickets as a profit center. They're particularly aggressive towards commercial vehicles, where they can often top $1000 in
fines per pull over. This is bad public policy in one area...the DUI. Jail time is expensive for gov't, so courts typically make the offender
just pay a couple thousand dollars in fines in court costs, & then put them back out on the street, most of the time driving again. This
takes only a few minutes of a judges time, so he/she can rake in many tens of thousands of dollars per hour.

An example of prosecutorial idiocy.....
http://www.philly.com/dailynews/loc...erving_7_years_for_guns_he_owned_legally.html

 

[Thesavorofpan]

Well, we wouldn't have to legalize all of them. Small steps such as moving marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule V would be the best start.

Just taking marijuana pharmaceutical companies could handle medical marijuana be it smoke, developed into a better pill or used in a vaporized form. Individual citizens could grow their own and certain businesses could apply for licenses to sell it. It would be reasonable to control it much like alcohol.

I doubt the effect on society would be bad. As it is now we are taking a drug known by the medical industry to be less damaging to an individuals health and less damaging to society at large than alcohol and treating it in an irrational manner. Forcing many into treatment which costs a lot of money to the individual and insurance companies who do not need to be there. Spending large amounts of money imprisoning people for it. The collateral damage from botched raids for this drug is inexcusable. The damage that has been done to civil rights prosecuting marijuana alone could be fixed.

The drug lords would continue with harder drugs such as cocaine, heroin, meth, etc. However, allowing for freer use of marijuana with less legal consequences could result in a shift of users from the more dangerous drugs to using one that involves less risks.

Anyone currently serving a sentence for the possession, manufacture or sale of marijuana could have those charges repealed and the sentencing on those charges commuted. However, if they are in jail, prison, paroled or on probation for other unrelated charges those would stick. For example, if someone was driving recklessly while high the reckless driving charge would stay.

We do not need to legalize all drugs. A step by step approach would be the best thing. Though I would push for leniency on LSD, ecstasy, cocaine, other hallucinogens and such for some reason I fully support a complete ban on illicit methamphetamine and heroin.

That was very helpful. To be honest I wouldn't give a rats *** about marijuana I just don't want the hard drugs to be legalize.

 

[dust1n]

Whatever role racism played in the past, I sure know an awful lot of white folk going to jail for drugs.
Either it's the demographics of running a self storage facility, or the gov't hates white guys now.

 

[dust1n]

That was very helpful. To be honest I wouldn't give a rats *** about marijuana I just don't want the hard drugs to be legalize.

Who cares if you want to put people in prison for non-violent crimes?

 

[dust1n]

Legalizing drugs pops a couple of questions in my head that I would like answered.
1. What kind of buisness would be ruining it?

The same evil one that operates any other kind of business.

2. What kind of effect would it have on soiecty in general? (I mean how would soiecty today change in reaction to this law.)

Significantly little, if you look at the results from the policies in Portugal.

3. What will happen to all those drug lords out there?

Probably some other bad thing.

4. What will happen to he people in jail convicted of drug crimes?

Set free, assuming their crime was non-violent.

5. Should we really allow destructive drugs like Crystal Meth and Herion to be freely taken by people?

Yes.

 

[dust1n]

Evidently not if people are stupid enough to keep committing crimes.

Capital punishment for rape, murder, GBH and the such i would have no problems with. I would also have no problems seeing it for gang related crimes as well as repeat offenders for stupid crimes. It just shows they din't learn their lesson inside.

Capital punishment often costs the state over three times as much as life sentences. If the prison-industrial complex is profit (or public at times), and it receives money by executing people, then the profit motive and murder of innocent people becomes synonymous.

People are stupid enough to break those laws, they're the stupid ones. People always say law enforcement is too harsh but if you don't commit crimes theres nothing to worry about.

Yes, like those Muslim women who have sex outside of marriage. If only they weren't so stupid, they wouldn't get killed. The law is the law, after all.

 

[Revoltingest]

Is this in general or just for drugs? Do you have any info on relative changes over the years?

 

[dust1n]

Is this in general or just for drugs? Do you have any info on relative changes over the years?

Have at it.

(2008 - illicit drug use by race) "Current illicit drug use among persons aged 12 or older varied by race/ethnicity in 2008, with the lowest rate among Asians (3.6 percent) (Figure 2.9). Rates were 14.7 percent for persons reporting two or more races, 10.1 percent for blacks, 9.5 percent for American Indians or Alaska Natives, 8.2 percent for whites, 7.3 percent of Native Hawaiians or Other Pacific Islanders, and 6.2 percent for Hispanics."
Source:


Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2009). Results from the 2008 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: National Findings (Office of Applied Studies, NSDUH Series H-36, HHS Publication No. SMA 09-4434). Rockville, MD, p. 25.
http://www.oas.samhsa.gov/nsduh/2k8nsduh/2k8Results.pdf




(2006 - state prisoners for drug offenses by race) Of the estimated 265,800 prisoners under state jurisdiction sentenced for drug offenses in 2006, 72,100 were white (27.1%), 117,600 were black (44.2%), and 55,700 were Hispanic (21%).

Source:
Sabol, William J.; West, Heather C.; and Cooper, Matthew, "Prisoners in 2008" Bureau of Justice Statistics (Washington, DC: US Department of Justice, December 2009), NCJ228417. p. 37.
http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/content/pub/pdf/p08.pdf
p. 37.

 

[dust1n]

More.. just for funsies.

Prisons & Drug Offenders | Drug War Facts

 

[Revoltingest]

More.. just for funsies.
Prisons & Drug Offenders | Drug War Facts

Must be the crowd I run with. None of the black fellas are in prison. A few of the white guys are, typically
for victimless crimes. When I run across guys who create real victims, the cops are less interested.

 

[dust1n]

Must be the crowd I run with. None of the black fellas are in prison. A few of the white guys are, typically
for victimless crimes. When I run across guys who create real victims, the cops are less interested.

Things vary all over the place.

 

[Revoltingest]

Things vary all over the place.

True dat.

 

[Alceste]

Must be the crowd I run with. None of the black fellas are in prison. A few of the white guys are, typically
for victimless crimes. When I run across guys who create real victims, the cops are less interested.

IMO, the real target of incarceration campaigns is the poor: more blacks and latinos tend to live in the poverty-stricken neighbourhoods the police like to "sweep" to get their stats up. Also, the poor can't afford the type of legal advice that gets you out of a prison sentence. Do you know a lot of poor white guys?

 

[Enoch07]

Decriminalize the production, sale and use of many illicit drugs.

Hey, given the number of people in jails, in prisons and on probation because of the production sale and use of illicit drugs it's going to be the most expedient solution.

I agree completely.

This would also take a lot of power away from the Mexican drug cartels and improve the lives of people in many border towns.

Unfortunately it could possibly make them even more powerful. Lets look back to the Prohibition Era for some insight. The mob gained most of its power during prohibition by providing alcohol to those willing to pay a steep price. After prohibition the mafia could no longer make the big money like they made during prohibition. So they moved on to gambling and other exploits and continued to become even stronger. The same could very well happen if we legalized drugs. The drugs would become ridiculously cheap, and therefore not as profitable. The cartels would likely just elevate their game in other illegal endeavors to make up for the loss of drug money. We would still have to deal with them, but just over a different cause.

The problem actually lies in the war on drugs. We have filled jails and prisons with harmless drug users and dealers. And even for hard drugs, the legal consequences are often more damaging than the drug.

I don't really agree with the harmless users part of your agreement, but harmless dealers is pushing it too far. I have seen far too many 10-15 year old children forced to sell drugs by a family member/peer who are dealers, which is unforgivable imo. I recognize not every dealer does this, but many do. With the intention to introduce the drugs to other children their age, so the dealers can get them hooked earlier in life to help maximize profits. I am sure most of you have heard about the cartels hiring teenagers to assassinate people in Mexico by now? If not check it out, and then try to convince us dealers are harmless.

 

[Revoltingest]

IMO, the real target of incarceration campaigns is the poor: more blacks and latinos tend to live in the poverty-stricken neighbourhoods the police like to "sweep" to get their stats up. Also, the poor can't afford the type of legal advice that gets you out of a prison sentence. Do you know a lot of poor white guys?

You betcha....tis a poplular demographic in Michigan these days.

 

[Twilight Hue]

Update for 2014.

We now topped 2.4 million people arrested and imprisoned in the land of the free.

World Map Of Incarceration Rates - Business Insider